CINEMA NAIRN is a small group of volunteers who love watching films on the big screen, and who wanted to see full-time cinema return to Nairn. It started over four years ago, and with the help of the Nairn Community & Arts Centre, it has gone from strength to strength, showing nearly 65 films to ever increasing audiences.

Over the years our programme of films has been praised for the eclectic mix of old and new and for our success at introducing the local community to hidden gems that they might have missed. We aim to appeal to a broad spectrum of interests and will once again show contemporary hits and old black and white classics, as well as films with a Scottish slant. Add to the mix two musicals, a documentary and two wonderful foreign language films, and we believe that the 2014 will be seen as our best programme yet.

Films are screened in the Nairn Community & Arts Centre on King Street (just off the A96), and occasionally in the Little Theatre in Fishertown.

Admission is £5.00 for adults and £3.00 for those under 18 years of age. There is also a loyalty scheme - so get your card stamped each time you come and you'll get the sixth film free!

Each year we screen up to four matinees to which people of any age are welcome to join us for a reduced price of £2.50, and with the added bonus of tea and home bakes, it's a great way to spend a Monday afternoon!

Monday, 30 November 2009

The three films chosen to kick of Cinema Nairn seemed to prove popular with a sizeable crowd attending each screening - about 130 people in total for the three films. "I Know Where I'm Going" proved the most popular (as predicted by our poll) with 61 people in attendance.

We were left hundreds of comments/suggestions and a few additional volunteers made themselves known, so once we have sifted through the notes and decided what to show/do next we will make announcements here and in the press.

Meanwhile we understand that we will be featuring on "Reporting Scotland" tonight (Monday 30th November) as some filming was carried out by the BBC at yesterdays event.

Wednesday, 25 November 2009

All three ticket outlets report steady sales of tickets for all three films due to be screened this Sunday (29th November) at the Nairn Community Centre. "I Know Where I'm Going" seems to be the favourite on our poll and ticket sales seem to bear this out. Don't miss your chance to influence any future screenings in Nairn by coming to a show and letting know what you want to see next.

Remember our prices are about half of the local flea-pits (Adults £4.00/Kids/Concessions £3.00) and we don't carry advertising or flog overpriced junk food!!

Tuesday, 17 November 2009

Things seem to be hotting up with press coverage all over the place (except Nairnshire) first the BBC with:

Oscar actress inspires cinema bid

Oscar-winning actress Tilda Swinton has been the inspiration behind a new group's bid to reopen the first cinema in a Highlands town since the 1970s. The actress co-organised two film festivals that have featured in Nairn in the past two years. She also has a home in the town. Cinema Nairn said her events suggested there was local demand for a new venue. More of this story here

Then the Press & Journal:

Silver screen dream for Nairn cinema club

town will hold a classic movie day following summer film festival

Moves have started to bring cinema back to Nairn after an absence of 30 years.The Highland seaside town, famed as the holiday resort of early movie star Charlie Chaplin and home to Oscar winner Tilda Swinton, hasn’t had a cinema since the 1970s when the Playhouse projected its final reel and closed its doors before eventually reopening as the British Legion and then Nairn County Social Club.

The seaside town of Nairn is famed as the favourite resort of Charlie Chaplin and the current home of Oscar winner Tilda Swinton. But despite its cinematic pedigree, the town has suffered an intermission of more than 30 years without a vital element – a cinema.In the 1970s, queues gathered at Nairn's picture house to see Grease before the John Travolta blockbuster was screened in Inverness, 16 miles away.

And Hi-Arts give us some coverage on their website with the following:

Cowboys, Kilts and a Wizard IdeaCinema set to return to Nairn after 30 years

Over the last two summers Nairn has had a starring role in the Ballerina Ballroom Cinema of Dreams and Pilgrimage film festivals, and it’s clear to local movie buffs there is a demand for regular screenings.

The Highland town used by the actress Tilda Swinton as the base for her film ­festivals could get a cinema for the first time in three decades.

Film fans in Nairn, which is also famous as Charlie Chaplin’s holiday resort, have been without a permanent venue since the Playhouse projected its final reel in the 1970s. After closing its doors, it eventually re-opened as the British Legion, then Nairn County Social Club.

Now there are moves afoot to bring the big screen back to the town on the shores of the Moray Firth. Over the past two summers, Nairn has had a starring role in Swinton’s Ballerina Ballroom Cinema of Dreams and Pilgrimage film festivals, and local movie buffs say there is a clear demand for regular screenings.

Most youngsters who’ve seen The Wizard of Oz will have seen it at home – a big screen projection in a cinema full of other excited kids will be quite a different experience! It’s 70 years old this year but remains a real feat of film-making.

Westerns represent cinema’s hey-day for a lot of people and The Magnificent Seven is the daddy of them all with brilliant performances from the likes of Steve McQueen and stirring music by Elmer Bernstein.

Tuesday, 10 November 2009

Moves are afoot to bring the movies back to Nairn. The Highland seaside town, famed as the holiday resort of Charlie Chaplin and home to Oscar winner, Tilda Swinton, hasn’t had a cinema since the 1970s when the Playhouse projected its final reel and became a bingo hall.

Over the last two summers Nairn has had a starring role in the Cinema of Dreams and Pilgrimage film festivals, and it’s clear to local movie buffs there is a demand for regular screenings.

A group of local enthusiasts calling themselves ‘Cinema Nairn’ have arranged for a day of classic movies to be shown on the big screen at the community centre on Sunday 29th November to gather reaction and, it is hoped, begin the revival of silver screen entertainment in the town...